


The Unwilling Queen

by primanocta



Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, Dark Fantasy, Elf/Human Relationship(s), Elves, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Fantasy, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Slow Burn, Strangers to Lovers, Work In Progress
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-10
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:14:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23086843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/primanocta/pseuds/primanocta
Summary: After a Feast goes terribly wrong, Lady Rhosmari Vailant rises from fifth in line to the Emrish throne, to directly competing with her brother. Now a Princess in exile, Rhosmari has decide quickly if she is ready to play the game of Court intrigue and politics...
Kudos: 2





	The Unwilling Queen

The Unwilling Queen is a first, serial fantasy story I'm working on to practice my writing skills.  
Therefore, I would love for people to read this and leave comments on what they enjoy as well as constructive criticism!  
Genre wise I think this WIP will be medieval fantasy inspired and covers my favourite tropes of Enemies to Lovers and Arranged Marriage! 

In order to save a lot of time from world building in the upcoming chapters, these next few paragraphs will cover the three kingdoms involved in this work: Cuspar, Catersi and Emrion. The continent itself is known as "Acreau".

To the North, freezing cold and predominantly surrounded by the mountains and the Black Sea is the human kingdom of Cuspar. In this wip the humans are known as the Duine and their king is Aengus of Urwal. The legends say that the Duine arrived in Acreau after a harsh winter decimated their crops: the first to arrive assimilated with the Elves - known as the Sidhe in this wip - to survive, creating the halfling race - known as the Sidui. Those that braved out the Black Winter in the mountains traded with the Sidhe of Acreau in an attempt to survive but as conditions worsened, the last of the Duine descended down the mountains. They lived alongside the Sidhe in Acreau for several hundred years, resenting their position of second class citizens. This descended into a civil war that continued for over one hundred years - a blink of the eye compared to the lifespan of the Sidhe, rumoured to be descended from the gods themselves. The war ended when the Sidhe ceded the northern territories to create the Kingdom of Cuspar. Due to their rocky relationship with the Sidhe, allegiances have been fraught and depend fully upon the Kingdom of Emrion as a broker. This isn't to say that the Duine and the Sidui (the Half Elves) get along, as Duinish Purists consider them to be "half-breeds” and would rather split the continent in two again. At the start of this wip several Duinish ships in the Black Sea have been sunk - with the Sidhe accused of the action

In the midlands of Acreau is the Kingdom of Emrion, landlocked by Cuspar to the North, Catersi to the South and the Republic of Espen to the West. The second youngest kingdom established in Acreau after the Great Civil War (400 years before this wip takes place), the Kingdom of Emrion was established by their first king, Ekberg. Situated between Cuspar and Catersi, Emrion is crucial for trade between the two nations and is therefore reknowned for birthing great diplomats and traders. King Stepan negotiated the third Peace Treaty in Acrean history when the Freefolke went to war with the three kingdoms: the founding of the Republic of Espen benefitted Emrion significantly, despite the leader of their army being the ex-captain of the Kingsguard, Lord Averus, as they were able to trade with islands to the West of Espen and benefit from their merchant navy. The current king of Emrion, Agrane, considers the Republic of Espen to be one of their strongest allies especially in the current climate of political turmoil. Appearance wise, the Sidui are taller and slimmer than the Duine but not as tall as the Sidhe. They have smaller pointed ears (think regular human ears that point at the tip) that are inherited from their Sidhe ancestors but a more muscular frame and an ability to withstand the cold from their Duinish ancestors. 

The Siddish (Elvish) Kingdom of Catersi to the South is considered to be the oldest kingdom in Acreau, with the Siddish people considered to be direct descendants of the Gods themselves. Their Kingdom stretched for all of Acreau until the arrival of the Duine from the Iron Mountains, the first arrivers assimilated into the Catersian population (giving birth to the Sidui) but the second arrivers caused a civil war that split the continent in two. After the creation of the two Kingdoms of Catersi and Cuspar, the Catersian monarchs reigned over the more arable lands and warmer climate of Southern Acreau. The Kingdom of Cuspar supported the Sidui uprising, a civil war that lasted for over two hundred years, before peace was negotiated and the third, smaller kingdom of Emrion was established, leading to longstanding distrust between the two nations.  
When the Freefolke Rebellion broke out, like the Kingdom of Cuspar, Catersi wanted to punish the newly formed Republic of Espen harshly but was prevented from doing so by the Kingdom of Emrion. It is rumoured (and highly circulated by the Duinish Court) that the Kingdom of Catersi is resentful at having lost so much territory and are planning to take it all back...

They look stereotypically High Elvish e.g. long, pointed ears and looks that would grace the covers of Vogue. Their economy used to be dependent upon trading crops to Cuspar via  
Emrion but now trading with the Kingdom of Obreak is more important, they trade metals and jewels from Cuspar to Obreak in return for spices, té and silks. Due to their longer lifespan, the Kingdom of Catersi is renowned for the continent’s best doctors and scholars. 

The Kingdom of Obreak and the Republic of Espen are mentioned frequently in this wip but never visited (who knows though…) but as a point of reference, here is some information on them. The Kingdom of Obreak is on a separate continent to Acreau and is the biggest kingdom there, they solely trade with the Kingdom of Catersi specifically with the Iron Port (Eastern Catersi) and in return receive metal and jewels from Cuspar. The Catersian Traders reached the Kingdom of Obreak before Cuspar, therefore established a trade agreement that locked out the Duinish Kingdom. 

The Republic of Espen was founded 150 years before the start of this wip and its population is predominantly the Sidui, Sidui/Duine (mixed) and some rebellious Sidhe. They were originally pirates, indiscriminately targeting the three kingdoms, with their stronghold being on the Cassora Isles. Once they were strong enough, they invaded Southern Cuspar, Western Emrion and Northern Catersi, hoping to establish a territory there: they were successfully pushed back off the Southern coast of Cuspar but managed to take their Lowlands. Their defeat did not last long when the Captain of Emrion’s Kingsguard defected to the Freefolke and commanded their armies. After several battles, Lord Averus was able to negotiate Peace with the three kingdoms through Emrion at the cost of supporting them with their “merchant” navy when the time came. In return (by way of thanks) the Republic of Espen traded solely with the Kingdom of Emrion: though they ships are not as large and destructive as the navies of Cuspar and Catersi, their smaller, faster ships are important for the raids they lead on other islands West of Acreau. 

Hopefully this chapter of world building helps make the rest of the story make sense, but if there’s any additional questions feel free to reach out to me here or on my writing instagram:

@primanoctis


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